Confused about P/V!

[TheOfficialBren]

Came across a fellow who has several kilts in P/V. He said that they were 16oz. The thought is intriguing. P/V is usually around 12oz...never have I seen 16oz P/V.

He says that the vendor he ordered from swears that it's 16oz and specially woven for them.

A few questions popped into my head.

1) is there a different standard for weighing fabric from mill to mill/vendor to vendo?
2) is it actually P/V?
3) there sems to be a large demand for heavier P/V. If it actually exists then why isn't it offered elsewhere?

I really like the smooth hand of P/V. My only irks about it are its light weight and limited tartan range. Other than that I love it.

Would the experts mind clarifying these points for me? Thank you.

*Disclaimer: not stirring the pot. I am genuainely curious.

[Llama]

I've seen those claims and have wondered about it as well.

[New World Czech]

What vendors are selling as 16oz Poly-Viscose is actually 16oz Poly-Acetate.
I am not a chemist so I cannot get into the compound differences. I have one of these heaver kilts.
Mine has a nice appearance and hand but the pleats tend to deform and hold unwanted creases more than true PV and definitely more than wool.
Mine also seams to hold more static cling, I have to shake out my apron after a walk across parking lot on a cold day.
The weight should be the standard measure of #oz for one yard of double width material.

[The Wizard of BC]

First off. There is no universally accepted or international standard for weights of fabric.
Even in our kilt world where we throw out weights of fabric with great relish there is no standard.

What is usually accepted is that a one yard long length of fabric should weigh a certain amount.
But fabrics are woven in different widths. These can vary (for double-width fabrics) from as little as 42 inches up to 68 inches in width.

If you measure this out in square inches it can vary from 1512 square inches up to 2375 square inches. That's a big difference.

Here on X Marks we have begun to accept a, more or less, standard of 60 inches when we talk of fabric weights.

Using this as our standard we can calculate the weights of our kilt fabrics and compare them with each other.


So, let's for this thread, use a standard of one fabric yard being equal to a piece of fabric 36 inches long by 60 inches wide. This would be 2160 square inches.

We call this one "fabric yard" so we do not confuse it with a "kilt yard", which is just the length of the fabric in a kilt, measured along the hem, regardless of the length of of the kilt from hem to waistband.

If this fabric yard is said to be woven in 16oz weight it should weigh 16oz or 1 pound.


We can now compare the fabric in one kilt to the fabric in another by measuring the total square inches of fabric used in the kilt and the total weight of the kilt when it is placed on a postal scale.

OK, now, how can you tell if the fabric in your kilt is 16oz in weight?

First measure the total length of the fabric used in the kilt along the hem. Be sure to include the facings on the apron edges.
Then measure the length of the kilt from the hem up to the waistband.
Multiply these two numbers.

for example: Let's say I have a kilt that used exactly 8 yards of fabric and the kilt is exactly 24 inches in length. My example kilt would have 6912 square inches of fabric in it.

Now, take the kilt and put it on a postal scale reading in ounces. Let's say that this kilt weighs exactly 51 ounces or 3.2 pounds.


What is the weight of the fabric used in the kilt?


If one fabric yard is equal to 16 ounces / 2160 square inches, and the fabric in my example kilt is 51 ounces / 6912 square inches, we can cross multiply and arrive at a number of ounces per square inch for this kilt.

That number is 16oz per fabric yard.

Of course this would never come out exactly like this because we have to account for the straps and buckles, the stabilizer, interfacing and lining if any, and also the thread used to sew the kilt.

For a rough field method of determining the weight of the fabric in a kilt weigh it and compare to these;

An 8 yard kilt from 10oz fabric will weigh about - 32 ounces or 2 lb.
An 8 yard kilt from 13oz fabric will weigh about - 42 ounces or 2 lb. 10 oz.
An 8 yard kilt from 16oz fabric will weigh about - 52 ounces or 3 lb. 4 oz.

[The Wizard of BC]

The only sure way to determine the fiber content of a fabric outside a lab is with a burn test. (a burn test is also used in the lab and with experience can be pretty accurate.)

Take a small yarn from the fringe or some frayed area.
Hold the fiber in tweezers.
Hold a match to it and watch how it reacts to the flame.
Then hold it to your nose and smell.

Compare what you see and smell to this chart.



Basically, if the yarn burns and does not self extinguish leaving a small, hard, ball of melted plastic and smells like a barbeque you have Acrylic.

If the yarn does not stay burning and leaves a crumbly, gray ash, and smells sharp like paper or chemicals you have Polyester/Rayon or P/V.

Wool will not stay lit at all, will leave a dry, light gray ash, and smells like what it is, burning hair.

[Godot]

Off to set my kilt on fire to make sure Rocky is really using P/V.

[artroland]

Off to set my kilt on fire to make sure Rocky is really using P/V.

LMAO. Egads. What have my comments lead to?

I was the one who stirred this question with a comment regarding my HOS kilt, so I best go measure it, and try a burn test and see what I get so we can put this to rest once and for all.

[TheOfficialBren]

Wizard, THANK YOU!!!

[artroland]

My Heritage of Ireland weighed the same. My Stillwater Thrifty acrylics were much lighter. I didn't try burning those, however.

[artroland]

I snipped a few fibers off the back of the fringe on my HOS Scottish National 8 yard kilt. They burned and melted, but went out as soon as the flame was away. It appears to be polyester from the smell and the hard black round bead. It weighs 3.6 pounds.